The drink/driving cop

[Ixion]

Not a significant precedent. I recall a woman charged with driving while disqualified - serious offense. However her reason was that she was taking a child's body to the airport to be flown back to Samoa for burial. There weren't any drivers in the distraught family so she did what she thought was the right thing.

The Judge quietly agreed and discharged her.

I don't think precedent can be invoked (not directly at any rate) as to a judges decision to discharge without conviction. It is part of the sentencing, not part of the law, the most that precedent could do would be to support an appeal that a sentence was unduely harsh. But IANAL and I may be quite wrong

[Winston001]

It is a precedent in the sense, as you rightly say, that it could be pointed to in another case if a harsh penalty was imposed. All decisions of the Courts create precedent, but only some are binding. You can pretty much ignore the District Court because it is the lowest level.

[spudchucka]

guttered, poor Richard will be upset to think his beloved wife's death has made a hero out of an intoxicated cop that let his 'drunker' mate drive, and kill an innocent motorist, especially when neither of them drunk at all!
For the record I think this decision sucks.

Facts! They are something that is seldom represented in threads like these and your post is a classic example.

Your feelings for this cop aside, nobody has said he's a hero. He pleaded guilty to drink driving and the Judge discharged him without conviction. The Judge based his decision on the facts that were presented in court.

One of the facts presented was that the cop had been drinking with the deceased driver. Another was that the deceased driver left the cops house without the cops knowledge. Not really a situation in which you can say that the cop "let his 'drunker' mate drive, and kill an innocent motorist".

Facts have fuck all to do with 99% of what gets posted on this web site.

[spudchucka]

C'mon now, compare apples with apples. If you lived in the wops and there was absolutely no alternative to driving slightly over the limit in order to save a life, you would more than likely get a discharge without conviction too.
The cop got the correct result. Infact he should not have been tested in the first place.
I wonder if the rat cop who tested him has any mates left?

Can't say this has ever happened to me before but......

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Lou Girardin again

[Patrick]

Just to recap...

He pleaded guilty... he did not find a loophole to get away with it, he admitted "breaking the law." He is not above the law as some seem to think...he pleaded guilty.

The judge made his decision on "sentencing" as to the "facts".... in short, they are:

1. He is the only cop in the area.
2. He is the holder of an "Advanced First Aid" certificate and has the only oxygen bottles on board for at least 15 minutes. There is no ambulance first response or even community nurse in Mokau any more.
3. He probably helped to save the life of the innocent passenger.
4. The offending driver was not let to drive by the cop - he snuck off.
5. The alarms went off... getting a lift with someone was a possibility, but when the shit hits the fan in these remote areas, there is no time to fart around or ring around. YOU GO, NOW!!!

There are probably others, but that'll do for now.

He doesn't do it for free. He is paid allowances to be "on call" and at a sole charge station, but he also has a pulse and a life...

Forget the what ifs and maybes. This was a different and very unique situation.

Cops get done for drink driving and lose their jobs all the time. We even get speeding tickets

It was a tragic situation with two people getting killed (one an innocent at the wrong place at the wrong moment and my full sympathies to thier family, the other a recidivist drunk driver... ) but at least one life was able to be helped by his rapid response with the necessary gear.

It will be interesting to see where to from here though. Internal discipline still to come, but in light of the judges comments which will be hard to ignore, who knows.

Lessons learned on his part... shame the drunk recidivist didn't learn any from his previous apprehensions...

Just who was the bad guy in all of this again?????

[Skyryder]

You can have shandy finn.

He'd still fall over.

Skyryder

[willy_01]

It was a tragic situation with two people getting killed (one an innocent at the wrong place at the wrong moment and my full sympathies to thier family, the other a recidivist drunk driver... ) but at least one life was able to be helped by his rapid response with the necessary gear.

Lessons learned on his part... shame the drunk recidivist didn't learn any from his previous apprehensions...

Fair call

spudchucka
Facts! They are something that is seldom represented in threads like these and your post is a classic example....

I understand what your saying mate, but the fact is if he had watched his mate that has had issues with alcohol in the past (i can only assume his friends knew about his convictions) surely this could have been avoided? And yes it is a 'what if' comment, I see your point of view, but personally it seems it could have all been so easily avoided with a bit of proactive police work, heck not even that just a mate looking out for a mate would have sorted it.
I see you’re a cop yourself spudchucka I don’t want you to feel like im taking a dig at what you guys do, in fact I respect it but something needs to change surely? 2 people did die.

[Lou Girardin]

Fair call

spudchucka
Facts! They are something that is seldom represented in threads like these and your post is a classic example....

I understand what your saying mate, but the fact is if he had watched his mate that has had issues with alcohol in the past (i can only assume his friends knew about his convictions) surely this could have been avoided?.

This is starting to sound like an LTNZ ad, "mates don't let mates drink and drive".
It's only an advert, not reality.
The fact is that people cannot protect other people from themselves. despite what the Labour party would have you believe. This is one clear case where personal responsibilty takes priority.
BTW. The cop saved a life, don't forget that amongst the dogma.

[spudchucka]

Fair call

spudchucka
Facts! They are something that is seldom represented in threads like these and your post is a classic example....

I understand what your saying mate, but the fact is if he had watched his mate that has had issues with alcohol in the past (i can only assume his friends knew about his convictions) surely this could have been avoided? And yes it is a 'what if' comment, I see your point of view, but personally it seems it could have all been so easily avoided with a bit of proactive police work, heck not even that just a mate looking out for a mate would have sorted it.
I see you’re a cop yourself spudchucka I don’t want you to feel like im taking a dig at what you guys do, in fact I respect it but something needs to change surely? 2 people did die.

The cop would have known about the guys previous form for drink driving, I'm sure of that, and I'd happily say that it is a sign of poor judgement that he is associating with someone like that. However the recidivist died, and killed another, directly as a result of his own actions, nobody else put him in the car.

I agree that something needs to change and its the attitude to boozing that exists in this country. I like a drink and occassionally I get drunk but I never drink and drive and I never come home and lay into the Mrs or kids. If people could drink responsibly then about 60% of the day to day shit the police have to deal with now wouldn't exist, (as a social problem requiring police attention).

[Lou Girardin]

but I never drink and drive and I never come home and lay into the Mrs .

Me neither, but sometimes I lay ON her.

[98tls]

C'mon now, compare apples with apples. If you lived in the wops and there was absolutely no alternative to driving slightly over the limit in order to save a life, you would more than likely get a discharge without conviction too.
The cop got the correct result. Infact he should not have been tested in the first place.
I wonder if the rat cop who tested him has any mates left?

i agree the cop got the best result and i hope any further inquiry goes well for him but......if he wasnt breath tested and a member of the public or whatever found out that he had been drinking then out would come all the snivelling whining basterds saying the cops looked after there own....rock and a hard place i reckon...hope it all works out for both of them...

[Patrick]

......if he wasnt breath tested and a member of the public or whatever found out that he had been drinking then out would come all the snivelling whining basterds saying the cops looked after there own....rock and a hard place i reckon...hope it all works out for both of them...

THAT is EXACTLY what did happen... and if the cop who breath tested him didn't test him, then his arse was grass...

[Blind spot]

Going to drive to a 50th birthday party tomorrow night.
Will the testing officer turn up 20 mins after the start and book us all for being over the limit on the way to the party.

[unhingedlizard]

I actually know the lady that was killed thru this mans actions, so we are even (not quite sure what your point is sorry). I’m sure he IS a good guy, but we (the public) get it drummed into us via road safety ad's/campaigns that one bad decision can cost a life, hence the 'no tolerance' enforcement of the law. I take issue more with what happened before the accident but there are conflicting stories and it is very hard to prove, so fair enough only going after a drink driving conviction. However to let the cop off after the constant bombardment we receive from the police and government by being punished ‘to the letter of the law’ is nuts. I have never had any issues with the police, I admire the job they do and I am not one to call them 'pigs'. But through this ordeal I have lost a massive amount of trust, both in the police and the 'justice' system.

I seem to have missed some posts here. I was refering to Jonathon Erwood from Mokau, Not to the maramarau incident.

Or are you refering to what i am?

[scumdog]

If people could drink responsibly then about 60% of the day to day shit the police have to deal with now wouldn't exist, (as a social problem requiring police attention).

You said a mouthful there, should need a licence to drink piss, most we deal with would fail, even if it was only a three question multi-choice 'scratchy' test.